Hose reel frame assembly with smooth surface

ABSTRACT

A frame assembly for a hose reel is provided. The frame assembly includes closed extrusion members. Closed extrusion members are structured to hide visually displeasing elements such as, but not limited to, support ribs. The closed extrusion members face downwards and backwards so that the visually pleasing outer side of the closed extrusion members are typically visible.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a hose reel and, more specifically, toa hose reel having a frame assembly including closed extrusion membersand wherein the closed extrusion members are positioned with their outerside oriented to be highly visible.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Hose reels are constructs structured to rotatably support a hose. Morespecifically, a hose reel has a frame assembly and a basket assembly.There are functional assemblies as well, such as, but not limited to,the water conduit assembly, but those are not relevant to the presentdisclosure. The basket assembly includes a barrel about which a hose iswound. The frame assembly is structured to rotatably support the basketassembly.

Hose reel frame assemblies are, typically, made from either tubularmetal members or molded plastic members. Metal frame assemblies tend tobe more expensive and are prone to rust. Thus, many hose reels are madefrom plastic. The molded plastic members are typically planar membershaving a perimeter sidewall and a plurality of support ribs on one orboth sides of the planar member. Generally, a smooth surface isconsidered more eye-pleasing, so many hose reels have the ribs on onlyone side. With this type of frame member, the ribbed side is oriented toface laterally inward or outward. That is, there are typically two sideframe assemblies held in a spaced relation that support a rotatablebasket assembly. Each side frame assembly is typically molded as asingle piece. These side frame assemblies are mirror images of eachother. The basket assembly is rotatably disposed between the side frameassemblies. To reduce the visual impact of the less attractive ribbedside of the side frames, the side frame assemblies ribbed sides areoriented so as to face the basket assembly. The same is also true forthe handle assembly which is coupled to the frame assemblies.

In this configuration, a user will typically see only one of the ribbedsides. That is, if the user is standing to the right of the hose reel,the user will see the smooth outer surface of the right frame assembly,but will also see past the basket assembly to see the ribbed inner sideof the left side frame assembly. A user standing in front of, or behind,the hose reel, will typically see both side frame assemblies' innersides.

In addition to the visual disadvantage of such plastic hose reels, thereis an economic disadvantage as well. As noted above, the side frameassemblies are mirror images of each other. This requires two molds; onefor each side frame as well as any associated parts. This also requiresadditional care in assembling a boxed hose reel for sale. That is,during the preparation of the boxed hose reel, care must be taken toensure that each box has the proper inventory of parts, typically onepart oriented for opposing sides of the hose reel.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The purpose of the present disclosure is to provide a visually pleasingplastic frame assembly for a hose reel, and to reduce the costassociated with preparing the disassembled hose reel kit. As is known,and as mentioned above, molding of plastic into an elongated, thinwalled planar member may incorporate a raised edge, side wall or medialrib to increase the rigidity of the member. The planar member may havesidewalls and ribs extending from opposing sides of the planar member.As used herein, such a construct shall be identified as a “two-sided”member. For aesthetics, and other reasons, plastic planar members mayhave one face without sidewalls and ribs, while having sidewalls andribs on the opposing face. That is, the planar member may have across-section similar to the shape of a bracket character, e.g. “[”. Asused herein, a planar member in such a configuration is a “one-sided”member having, as used herein, a “smooth side” without ribs, and, asused herein, a “ribbed side,” having ribs. Further, in either theone-sided or two-sided configuration, both sides of the planar memberare generally visible. Accordingly, as used herein, a planar extrusionis an “open extrusion.”

Conversely, in an elongated plastic member having an arcuatecross-section, especially where the radius is relatively small, i.e.less than 2.5 inches, an angled cross-section, and/or wherein thelongitudinal sidewalls extend generally tangent to the arcuate portion,e.g. such as, but not limited to, a “U” shape, only the outer side ofthe member is generally visible and the inner side of the member isgenerally hidden. Accordingly, as used herein, an extrusion having across-section structured so as to substantially hide one side of themember is a “closed extrusion.” More specifically, a closed extrusionhaving an arcuate portion, as used herein, is an “arcuate closedextrusion.” Further, as used herein, a closed extrusion has an “innerside,” e.g. the concave side, and an “outer side,” e.g. the convex side.The inner and outer sides may “face” a particular direction. That is, asused herein, “face,” when used as a verb, means that the identified sideis predominantly visible from the identified direction. For example, ifthe outer side of the curved member faces upwardly, as in an inverted“U,” the outer side is predominantly visible when viewed from above. Itis noted that, with an inverted U-shaped extrusion, the outer side isalso visible from the sides. Conversely, a curved inner side that facesdownwardly is predominantly visible when viewed from below; due to thecurvature of the member, however, the inner side is less visible fromthe sides.

Further, the support ribs are preferably disposed on the inner side of aclosed extrusion. In this configuration, the ribs are typically notvisible. Thus, such extruded members may be positioned so that the innerside is not highly visible and the outer side is. This does not mean,however, that the inner side can never be seen, only that when generallyviewed, the outer side is more visible than the inner side. Morespecifically, a closed extruded member may be positioned with the outerside oriented to be “highly visible.” As used herein, “highly visible”means that a substantial portion of the outer side of a closed extrusionfaces substantially forward and/or upward.

The concept disclosed below relates to extruded plastic membersconfigured to form a frame assembly for a hose reel. The plastic membersforming the frame assembly are a closed extrusion which are oriented sothat the inner side having ribs is generally hidden. For example, thehose reel has a lower frame assembly structured to support a hose reelhaving generally “A” shaped frame members. The frame members includeclosed extruded members wherein the inner sides are disposed at theinterior surfaces of the “A” shape. In this configuration, the innerside of the closed extruded members are substantially not visible. Thatis, the ribs can only be seen easily from the lower side of the frameassembly and, as this side is adjacent to the ground, users should notbe able to see the ribs during normal operation of the hose reel.

Further, when the frame members are formed from a closed extrusion, thesame components may, typically be used on either side of the finishedframe assembly. That is, unlike one sided plastic frame members, whereinthe closed side faces inwardly and which therefore require a specificright side frame and left side frame, a closed extrusion frame memberthat faces downwardly may be used on either side of the frame assembly.As both sides of the frame assembly are alike, there is no need for sidespecific molds and no need to track which components are provided in thedisassembled kit. That is, the number of components must be tracked,e.g. two side frame assemblies, but not the type of components, e.g. oneright side frame assembly and one left side frame assembly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full understanding of the invention can be gained from the followingdescription of the preferred embodiments when read in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a hose reel.

FIG. 2A-2C are assembly views of the hose reel. FIG. 2A shows the basketassembly and the side frame assemblies. FIG. 2B further shows the handleassembly. FIG. 2C further shows the base assembly.

FIG. 3A-3C show alternate cross-sectional views of closed extrusionmembers. FIG. 3A shows a closed extrusion member with a flat base plate.FIG. 3B shows a closed extrusion member with an angled base plate. FIG.3C shows a closed extrusion member with an arcuate base plate.

FIG. 4 shows a bottom view of the hose reel.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As used herein, “coupled” means a link between two or more elements,whether direct or indirect, so long as a link occurs.

As used herein, “directly coupled” means that two elements are directlyin contact with each other.

As used herein, “fixedly coupled” or “fixed” means that two componentsare coupled so as to move as one while maintaining a constantorientation relative to each other. The fixed components may, or maynot, be directly coupled.

As used herein, the word “unitary” means a component is created as asingle piece or unit. That is, a component that includes pieces that arecreated separately and then coupled together as a unit is not a“unitary” component or body.

As used herein, “temporarily coupled” means that two components arecoupled in a manner that allows for the components to be easilydecoupled without damaging the components.

As used herein, “correspond” indicates that two structural componentsare sized to engage each other with a minimum amount of friction. Thus,an opening which corresponds to a member is sized slightly larger thanthe member so that the member may pass through the opening with aminimum amount of friction. This definition is modified if the twocomponents are said to fit “snugly” together. In that situation, thedifference between the size of the components is even smaller wherebythe amount of friction increases.

As used herein a “handle” is an element that is generally structured tobe grasped by a user and not an element that is merely capable of beinggrasped. For example, a wheelbarrow frame assembly may have a pluralityof elongated members that may be grasped, but only the handles arestructured, i.e. positioned and sized, to be grasped by the user.

As used herein, a “grip” is the portion of a handle structured to begripped by a user. A “grip” includes a portion of a handle having asufficient, substantially straight length of handle to accommodate thewidth of four fingers, and may also include a textured surface on thehandle and/or a padded portion of the handle. A “grip” must bedistinguishable from other portions of the handle. For example, asmooth, straight broomstick is a handle without an identifiable gripbecause no portion of the handle is different than any other portion.

As described below, there are several components of the hose reel thathave similar corresponding components, often a mirror image component.It is understood when two components are being described, subsequentpairs of reference numbers relate to the respective components. Forexample, as set forth below, the first and second side frame assemblies26, 28 each include a forward support member 40, 42. This means that thefirst side frame assembly 26 includes forward support member 40 and thesecond side frame assembly 28 includes forward support member 42.

As shown in FIG. 1, a hose reel 10 includes a frame assembly 20, arotating basket assembly 200, and a water conduit assembly 300. The hosereel 10 has a front side 12, a rear side 14, a first lateral side 16 anda second lateral side 18. Generally, the user is positioned behind therear side 14 when moving the hose reel 10, and, to the front side 12 orone of the lateral sides 16, 18 when using the hose reel 10. Further,because the handle assembly 22 is positioned at the rear side 14, thefront side 12 is typically shown when the hose reel 10 is displayed,e.g. prior to sale or in advertisements.

The frame assembly 20 is made from plastic components and, as detailedbelow, preferably from a plurality of elongated members which include atleast one closed, extruded member 21. As shown in FIG. 2A-2C, the frameassembly 20 includes a handle assembly 22 and a lower frame assembly 24.The lower frame assembly 24 is structured to rotatably support thebasket assembly 200. The lower frame assembly 24 includes twosubstantially similar side frame assemblies, a first side frame assembly26 and a second side frame assembly 28, and, in the preferredembodiment, a base assembly 29. The two side frame assemblies 26, 28 aremaintained in a spaced relation by the basket assembly 200 and/or one ormore elongated cross frame members 30 located on the base assembly 29.The two side frame assemblies 26, 28 each have a forward support member40, 42 and a rear support member 44, 46. The side frame assemblies 26,28 are shaped generally as an inverted “V.” At the vertex of each sideframe assembly 26, 28 is a hub 32, 34, to which the basket assembly 200is rotatably coupled. It is noted that the side frame assemblies 26, 28are substantially identical. That is, the side frame assemblies 26, 28are interchangeable.

The base assembly 29 includes a first base member 48 and a second basemember 50 as well as one or more cross frame members 30. In a preferredembodiment, the base members 48, 50 are shaped as upwardly extendingarches. On each base member 48, 50 there is a front coupling 52, 54, anda rear coupling 56, 58. Each coupling 52, 54, 56, 58 includes a post 53and a lug 55. Each coupling 52, 54, 56, 58, and more specifically eachpost 53, extends generally upwardly. Each lug 55 is disposed at thedistal end of the associated post 53 and each lug 55 is sized and shapedto snuggly correspond to the lower ends of the support members 40, 42,44, 46. The side frame assemblies 26, 28 are coupled, as describedbelow, to the upper side of the base assembly 29 to form the lower frameassembly 24. In this embodiment, the first side frame assembly 26, thesecond side frame assembly 28, and the base assembly 29 are each formedas a unitary body. It is, however, noted that the base assembly 29 crossframe members 30 may be formed independently and thereafter coupled tothe base members 48, 50.

Further, a wheel 45, 47 (FIG. 2C) may be rotatably coupled to eachlateral side of the base assembly 29. That is, a first wheel 45 isrotatably disposed at the distal, lower end of the first base member 48.Similarly, the second wheel 47 is rotatably disposed at the distal,lower end of the second base member 50. The hub 32, 34 support members40, 42, 44, 46, and base members 48, 50 of each lateral side of theframe assembly 20 are, generally, disposed in a plane.

The side frame assemblies 26, 28 are structured to rotatably support thebasket assembly 200. That is, the basket assembly 200 includes acylindrical barrel 202. At each end of the barrel 202 there is aradially extending flange 204, 206. The space about the barrel 202 andin between the two flanges 204, 206 define the basket 208 which is thespace in which the hose reel hose (not shown) is disposed. That is, thehose reel hose is wrapped about the barrel 202. As is known, a portionof the water conduit assembly 300 extends through one axle 212 (FIG. 2A)and is structured to supply water to the hose reel hose. A basket handleor crank 214 (FIG. 1) is fixed to the barrel 202.

The frame assembly 20 may include various types of members, e.g. solid,hollow, closed extrusion, etc. In this disclosure, at least one framemember 30 is an elongated closed extrusion member 31, as shown in FIGS.3A-3C. As defined above, a closed extrusion member 31 has an inner side33 and an outer side 35. The closed extrusion member outer side 35 isgenerally free from mold lines, openings, couplings, etc. The closedextrusion member 31 may be a narrow channel formed from an elongated,generally flat base plate 60A having generally perpendicular,longitudinal sidewalls 62A, as shown in FIG. 3A, an elongated, angledbase plate 60B with (FIG. 3B) or without (not shown) longitudinalsidewalls 62B, or in the preferred embodiment, an arcuate base portion60C with (FIG. 3C) or without (not shown) longitudinal sidewalls 62C.That is, in an arcuate closed extrusion member there is a longitudinallyextending arcuate base portion 60C as well as longitudinal sidewalls 62Cthat extend generally tangent to the ends (when viewed in cross-section)of the arcuate base portion 60C. In cross-section, this configurationresembles a capital “U.”

The at least one closed extrusion member 31 is positioned with the outerside 35 oriented to be highly visible. That is, the at least one closedextrusion member 31, or a substantial portion of the at least one closedextrusion member 31, outer side 35 faces generally forward and/orupward. Conversely, the at least one closed extrusion member 31, innerside 33 faces generally backward and/or downward. In this configuration,a user or observer will typically see the smooth outer side of the atleast one closed extrusion member 31.

A closed extrusion member 31 may further be supported by one or moreribs 51. The ribs 51 are disposed on the inner side of a closedextrusion member 31. The ribs 51 are planar members having an inner edge64 and an outer edge 66. The rib inner edge 64 is, preferably, directlycoupled to the inner side 33 of a closed extrusion member 31 and may beformed as a unitary body therewith. Thus, the rib inner edge 64,preferably, corresponds with the shape of the closed extrusion member31. That is, if the closed extrusion member 31 is a narrow, rectangularchannel, as shown in FIG. 3A, the rib inner edge 64 is substantiallylinear. If the closed extrusion member 31 has an angled base plate 60B,the rib inner edge 64 has a corresponding angle. And if the closedextrusion member 31 has an arcuate base portion 60C, the rib inner edge64 is arcuate. The rib outer edge 66 is typically either a straight edgeor a curved edge. When the rib outer edge 66 is straight, it typicallyextends in a plane parallel to the distal ends of the closed extrusionmember side walls 62A, 62B, 62C or the distal ends of the angled baseplate 60B, or arcuate base portion 60C. When the rib outer edge 66 is acurved edge, the rib outer edge 66 is generally arcuate, but having agreater radius than the arcuate base portion 60C. In this configuration,the rib 51 tapers at tips of the outer edge 66. Alternatively, the ribouter edge 66 may have the same curvature as the arcuate base portion60C, but, where the rib 51 extends over the longitudinal sidewalls 62C,the rib outer edge 66 tapers. Finally, it is noted that a rib 51 may bedisposed at the very end of the closed extrusion member 31, creating aclosed end, or spaced from the very end of the closed extrusion member31, creating a pocket (not shown) defined by the rib 51 and the distalend of the closed extrusion member 31.

The ribs 51 may extend generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axisof the closed extrusion member 31 or may extend at an angle generallyless than perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the closed extrusionmember 31. Typically, when the ribs 51 have a curved outer edge 66, theribs 51 extend generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of theclosed extrusion member 31. Ribs 51 in this configuration resemble theinner side of a canoe. Ribs 51 having a straight outer edge 66 typicallyextend at an angle generally less than perpendicular to the longitudinalaxis of the closed extrusion member 31. Further, such ribs 51 typicallycross over each other creating a pattern similar to “X's”, as shown inFIG. 4.

Preferably, each of the frame members 30 forming the side frameassemblies 26, 28, and the base assembly 29 are closed extrusion members31. That is, each support member, 40, 42, 44, 46, and each base member48, 50 is elongated and has a lateral width, i.e. a width normal to theplane of the side frame assemblies 26, 28. The support members 40, 42,44, 46 each descend from the associated hub 32, 34 with the forwardsupport members 40, 42 extending toward the hose reel front side 12 andthe rear support members 44, 46 extending toward the hose reel rear side14. The distal ends of each support member, 40, 42, 44, 46 have a rib 51spaced therefrom. That is, each distal end of each support member, 40,42, 44, 46 forms a pocket (not shown).

As noted above, base members 48, 50 may be upwardly arched so that, whenthe side frame assemblies 26, 28 are coupled thereto, the two lateralsides of the frame assembly 20 generally resemble a capital “A” with thehub 32, 34 at the vertex of the support members, 40, 42, 44, 46. In thisconfiguration, a user, and more specifically a user's eyes, willtypically be disposed above the side frame assemblies 26, 28 and thebase assembly 29. Thus, to reduce the chance of the user seeing theclosed extrusion member inner side 33, the closed extrusion membersinner sides 33 face generally downwardly. It is noted that, at the backend of the arched base members 48, 50, the closed extrusion membersinner sides 33 face forwardly and, as such, could be seen by a userstanding directly in front of the hose reel 10. Typically, however, theother elements of the side frame assemblies 26, 28, notably the forwardsupport member 40, 42, will block the user's view of the forward end ofthe arched base members 48, 50. Only when a user is standing to one sideof the hose reel 10 will the user be able to see some small portion ofthe arched base member closed extrusion inner side 33. This is noted asthe disclosed concept does not require that the entire closed extrusioninner side 33 face backwardly and/or downwardly, but rather that asubstantial portion of each closed extrusion member 31 face backwardlyand/or downwardly.

Further, the base assembly cross frame members 30 may also be closedextrusion members 31. The cross frame members 30 are, preferably,arcuate closed extrusion members 31 having longitudinal sidewalls. Theclosed extrusion cross frame members 30 may have ribs 51 disposed on theinner side. The closed extrusion cross frame members 30 facesubstantially downwardly. In this configuration, a user cannot typicallysee the inner side of the closed extrusion cross frame members 30. It isnoted that, while the closed extrusion member outer side 35 is typicallysmooth, the closed extrusion cross frame member 30 disposed at the frontside of the hose reel 10 may include a textured step 23. The texturedstep 23 is disposed on the same lateral side as the barrel crank 214. Inoperation, the user may stand on the textured step 23 while using thecrank 214.

To assemble the lower frame assembly 24 the two side frame assemblies26, 28 are coupled to the base assembly 29. More specifically, thepockets located at the distal ends of each support member 40, 42, 44, 46correspond to the lugs 55 and, more specifically, the lugs 55 snugglycorrespond to the pockets. Further, the posts 53 have an outer surfacewith substantially the same dimensions as the support member 40, 42, 44,46 coupled thereto. In this configuration, there is an essentiallyseamless transition between the outer side 35 of each support member 40,42, 44, 46 and the associated coupling 52, 54, 56, 58.

The frame assembly handle assembly 22 also includes closed extrusionmembers 31. As shown in FIG. 2B, the handle assembly 22 includes agenerally U-shaped handle assembly body 70 with an elongated, first arm72, an elongated second arm 74, a handle member 76. That is, the handleassembly body 70 has two tines, i.e. the arms 72, 74, and a bight, i.e.the handle member 76. The handle member 76 may include a texturedsurface defining a grip 78. Each arm 72, 74 has a distal end 80, 82spaced from the handle member 76. Similar to the support members, 40,42, 44, 46, the handle assembly arms 72, 74 are preferably closedextrusion members 31. Each handle assembly arm 72, 74 is rotatablycoupled to one of the side frame assemblies 26, 28, but may betemporarily fixed in at least one of an upper or lower position.

That is, the handle assembly 22 may move between an upper first position(FIG. 1) and a lower second position (FIG. 2C). Generally, the handleassembly 22 is placed in the upper position when the user is moving thehose reel 10 from one location to another. When the handle assembly 22is temporarily locked in this position, a user applies a slight downwardpressure, or backward horizontal pressure, to the handle member 76thereby causing the hose reel 10 to rotate about the wheels 45, 47 andlifting the forward side of the base assembly 29 off the ground. Thehose reel 10 may then be rolled from one location to another.

When the handle assembly 22 moves between the first and secondpositions, the first and second arms 72, 74 also move between an upperfirst position and a lower second position. It is noted that, unlike theprior art, wherein it is known to move the handle to the front of thehose reel 10 in the lower position, in this embodiment when the firstand second arms 72, 74 are in the first position, the handle assemblybody 70 extends toward the lower frame assembly 24 rear side 14, andwhen the first and second arms 72, 74 are in the second position, saidhandle assembly body 70 extends toward said lower frame assembly 24 rearside 14 as well.

As noted above, the handle assembly arms 72, 74 are preferably closedextrusion members 31. The handle assembly arms 72, 74 are positionedwith the inner side 33 of the closed extrusion members 31 facinggenerally backwardly when in the first, upper position, andsubstantially downwardly when in the second, lower position. As before,the handle assembly arms 72, 74 may be any embodiment of a closedextrusion member 31, as discussed above, but are preferably arcuateclosed extrusion members having tangential sidewalls. The handleassembly arms 72, 74 preferably include ribs 51 having a straight outeredge extending at an angle generally less than perpendicular to thelongitudinal axis of the closed extrusion member 31. That is, the handleassembly arms 72, 74 preferably include ribs 51 which cross over eachother creating a pattern similar to “X's”, as shown in FIG. 4. In thisconfiguration, the user cannot, typically, see the inner side of theclosed extrusion handle assembly arms 72, 74 when the handle assembly 22is in the second, lower position. When the handle assembly 22 is in thefirst position and the user is behind the hose reel 10, the user can,typically, see the inner side of the handle assembly arms 72, 74. Whenthe hose reel 10 is used, however, the user typically moves to the frontside of the hose reel 10, where the hose is located. When the user is infront of the hose reel 10, or even to the lateral sides of the hose reel10, the user cannot see the inner side of the handle assembly arms 72,74. Accordingly, when the handle assembly 22 is in the first positionand the closed extrusion member handle assembly arms 72, 74 facegenerally backwards, the closed extrusion member handle assembly arms72, 74 are positioned with the outer sides oriented to be highlyvisible.

The handle member 76 may also be a closed extrusion member, but morepreferably is formed of a series of exposed, closely spaced, parallelribs 51, thereby forming the grip 78. A shell 79, e.g. a semicirculartube, may be disposed over a portion of the exposed ribs 51 forming thegrip 78.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been described indetail, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and alternatives to those details could be developed inlight of the overall teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly, theparticular arrangements disclosed are meant to be illustrative only andnot limiting as to the scope of invention which is to be given the fullbreadth of the claims appended and any and all equivalents thereof.

1. A hose reel frame assembly for a hose reel, said hose reel having abasket assembly, said basket assembly having a cylindrical barrel withan axis, said basket assembly structured to be rotatably coupled to saidframe assembly and to rotate about said axis, said frame assemblycomprising: a plurality of elongated members structured to rotatablysupport said basket assembly; and said plurality of elongated membersincluding at least one elongated closed extrusion member, said at leastone closed extrusion member positioned with the outer side oriented tobe highly visible.
 2. The frame assembly of claim 1 wherein said atleast one closed extrusion member includes a longitudinally extendingarcuate portion.
 3. The frame assembly of claim 1 wherein: said at leastone closed extrusion member includes a longitudinally extending arcuatebase portion and two longitudinal sidewalls; each said sidewall disposedat one end of the arc defining the arcuate base portion and extendinggenerally parallel to the other sidewall.
 4. The frame assembly of claim3 wherein said at least one closed extrusion member includes a pluralityof interior support ribs disposed on the inner side of said at least oneclosed extrusion member.
 5. The frame assembly of claim 4 wherein: saidsupport ribs are planar members having an inner edge and an outer edge;each said support rib inner edge directly coupled to the at least oneclosed extrusion member inner side; each said support rib outer edgebeing a generally straight edge; and each said support rib planar memberextending at an angle generally less than perpendicular to thelongitudinal axis of said at least one closed extrusion member.
 6. Theframe assembly of claim 4 wherein: said support ribs are planar membershaving an inner edge and an outer edge; each said support rib inner edgebeing directly coupled to the at least one closed extrusion member innerside; and each said support rib planar member extending at an anglegenerally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said at least oneclosed extrusion member.
 7. The frame assembly of claim 6 wherein atleast one of said support rib planar members outer edge is generallyarcuate.
 8. The frame assembly of claim 6 wherein at least one of saidsupport rib planar members tapers from an elongated medial portion tonarrow portions on each lateral side.
 9. The frame assembly of claim 6wherein: said plurality of elongated members form a lower frame assemblyand a movable handle; said lower frame assembly and said movable handleformed substantially from elongated closed extrusion members; saidhandle having a body with a first elongated arm, a second elongated arm,and a bight, each of said first elongated arm and second elongated armbeing a closed extrusion member; said movable handle rotatably coupledto said lower frame assembly and structured to move between an upper,first position, wherein each movable handle closed extrusion memberinner side faces generally backwardly, and a lower, second position,wherein each movable handle closed extrusion member inner side facesgenerally downwardly; said lower frame assembly having two side frameassemblies and a base assembly; each side frame assembly having aforward support member, a rear support member, and a hub; said baseassembly having two base members and at least one cross frame member;each said side frame assembly support member, and each said baseassembly base member and cross frame member being a closed extrusionmember; and wherein each lower frame assembly closed extrusion memberinner side faces generally downwardly.
 10. The frame assembly of claim 9wherein: said lower frame assembly includes at least one cross framemember; and said cross frame member being a closed extrusion member,said closed extrusion cross frame member facing downwardly.
 11. A hosereel comprising: a frame assembly; a basket assembly, said basketassembly having a cylindrical barrel with an axis, said basket assemblystructured to be rotatably coupled to said frame assembly and to rotateabout said axis; said frame assembly including a plurality of elongatedmembers structured to rotatably support said basket assembly; and saidplurality of elongated members including at least one elongated closedextrusion member, said at least one closed extrusion member positionedwith the outer side oriented to be highly visible.
 12. The hose reel ofclaim 11 wherein said at least one closed extrusion member includes alongitudinally extending arcuate portion.
 13. The hose reel of claim 11wherein: said at least one closed extrusion member includes alongitudinally extending arcuate base portion and two longitudinalsidewalls; each said sidewall disposed at one end of the arc definingthe arcuate base portion and extending generally parallel to the othersidewall.
 14. The hose reel of claim 13 wherein said at least one closedextrusion member includes a plurality of interior support ribs disposedon the inner side of said at least one closed extrusion member.
 15. Thehose reel of claim 14 wherein: said support ribs are planar membershaving an inner edge and an outer edge; each said support rib inner edgedirectly coupled to the at least one closed extrusion member inner side;each said support rib outer edge being a generally straight edge; andeach said support rib planar member extending at an angle generally lessthan perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said at least one closedextrusion member.
 16. The hose reel of claim 14 wherein: said supportribs are planar members having an inner edge and an outer edge; eachsaid support rib inner edge being directly coupled to the at least oneclosed extrusion member inner side; and each said support rib planarmember extending at an angle generally perpendicular to the longitudinalaxis of said at least one closed extrusion member.
 17. The hose reel ofclaim 16 wherein at least one of said support rib planar members outeredge is generally arcuate.
 18. The hose reel of claim 16 wherein atleast one of said support rib planar members tapers from an elongatedmedial portion to narrow portions on each lateral side.
 19. The hosereel of claim 16 wherein: said plurality of elongated members form alower frame assembly and a movable handle; said lower frame assembly andsaid movable handle formed substantially from elongated closed extrusionmembers; said handle having a body with a first elongated arm, a secondelongated arm, and a bight, each of said first elongated arm and secondelongated arm being a closed extrusion member; said movable handlerotatably coupled to said lower frame assembly and structured to movebetween an upper, first position, wherein each movable handle closedextrusion member inner side faces generally backwardly, and a lower,second position, wherein each movable handle closed extrusion memberinner side faces generally downwardly; said lower frame assembly havingtwo side frame assemblies and a base assembly; each side frame assemblyhaving a forward support member, a rear support member, and a hub; saidbase assembly having two base members and at least one cross framemember; each said side frame assembly support member, and each said baseassembly base member and cross frame member being a closed extrusionmember; and wherein each lower frame assembly closed extrusion memberinner side faces generally downwardly.
 20. The hose reel of claim 19wherein: said lower frame assembly includes at least one cross framemember; and said cross frame member being a closed extrusion member,said closed extrusion cross frame member facing downwardly.